I. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a temperature sensitive downrigger assembly. More particularly, the present invention relates to a downrigger assembly that may be programmed to have the weighted and hooked end of the line seek out then remain at a preselected region of water according to temperature.
II. Description of the Relevant Art
Sport fishing has a great and long tradition. Many people who enjoy the hobby of fishing began fishing with their parents when they were very young. In this way the hobby has developed into a great tradition, handed down from generation to generation.
Many forms of fishing are known to the sport fishermen and these forms include casting and trolling. As to the former form, casting is usually done from the shore of a body of water or sometimes may be done from a fixed artificial object such as a dock. Casting may also be done off of a boat that is sitting still in the water.
Another form of fishing that is well known and very commonly undertaken is trolling. Trolling is typically undertaken by the fishermen employing a moving boat and having a line following along in the water as the boat proceeds along in its course. The trolling action of the line and the associated lure give the impression to the passing fish that the object is in motion, thereby making the lure appear as though it is living. Naturally a living lure, or at least one which appears to be living, is much more interesting to a hungry fish than is a conventional artificial lure. It is therefore this trolling action which adds considerable interest to the lure for the fish.
Trolling is typically undertaken using a device conventionally known as a "downrigger". The downrigger includes a drive motor having an attached cable. At the free end of a downrigger cable is fitted a weight, often referred to as the "cannon ball". The weight is used as an attachment point for a fishing reel hook lead. If a fishing reel hook and its associated line were merely dropped into the water off of a trolling boat, the hook itself would be extended virtually in a straight line away from the boat and away from the end of the fishing rod. Accordingly, the hook end lead is attached to the area of the cannon ball on the downrigger cable.
For convenience, the rod and reel associated to the downrigger assembly are mounted generally on or about the motor of the downrigger assembly. As it is conventionally used, the person doing the trolling observes the line associated with the rod and reel without actually having to hold the rod and reel. Through the person's observations, if a line suddenly becomes taut (more taut than it would normally be while trolling); and if the rod appears to bend downwardly at its far end, a fish has indeed taken the bait.
There are several problems associated with known downrigger devices. The first is the general problem that much is unknown about the temperature preferences of certain fish. This general lack of knowledge is compounded by the fact that the preferred temperature of certain species of fish changes throughout the seasons. The other problem is that even if the preferred water temperature of a particular species of fish was known, it is difficult to determine at what depth the cannon ball and its associated hook are being situated. For example, if one having knowledge about a particular body of water determines that at a fifty-five foot depth the temperature is at a particular level at which, for example, salmon prefer to reside, then one may drop the line to the fifty-five foot depth. However, the formula usually is not that simple. Because of wave action, currents, bottom topography, season, and other variable factors, very often this fifty-five foot figure has only limited utility.
The trolling fishermen generally is frustrated in all attempts to identify, to reach, and ultimately to maintain a particular water temperature.
At various times efforts have been made to overcome problems typically related to use of a downrigger assembly in fishing at particular depths. For example, a water temperature measurement apparatus is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 4,782,617 issued on Nov. 8, 1988, to Peikin. This invention discloses a water temperature measuring device that includes a temperature sensor and a reel assembly. The temperature sensor is used to measure the temperature of water at a given depth.
In another effort to provide a solution to the problem of downrigging devices for use at selected temperatures, U.S. Pat. No. 4,050,180, was issued on Sep. 27, 1977 to King. This invention discloses a temperature and depth indicating downrigging reel in which the downrigger is fitted with a temperature sensing device for sensing the temperature at a given depth of water.
However, neither of these references overcomes the problem of maintaining a desired temperature while the user is employing a downrigger assembly. Thus, the prior approaches to solving the problem of providing an efficient means of seeking out then maintaining a particular temperature of water while using a downrigger assembly have failed to provide a solution.